Restorative Practices

Restorative Practices provides a platform to repair harm after conflict, build or restore trust, and establish quality relationships. East St. Louis School District 189 began using Restorative Practices in 2015. Restorative Practices offer alternatives to traditional school discipline consequences. Rather than focusing on punishment, Restorative Practices seek to repair the harm done through face-to-face dialogue, which results in consensus-based plans in the wake of a punishable activity. This can take many forms, most notably conferencing models, victim-offender dialogue, and circle processes.

East St. Louis School District 189 is investing in Restorative Practices and is committed to providing quality training for all faculty and staff. Through the use of Restorative Practices, students gain the opportunity to make their voice and opinions heard, the ability to discuss emotional harm, and the responsibility to make things right if they’ve caused harm to others. As a result, we have experienced a 12 percent decline in overall suspensions, and a 43 percent decline in suspensions in our secondary schools.